A friend’s birthday celebration in Australia’s second-biggest city gave Georgia Bisset the chance to travel to Melbourne and check out the Voco hotel. Here’s her verdict on this fab new Melbourne hotel!
We chose to stay at Voco Melbourne Central – the first new-build Voco property opened by IHG Hotels & Resorts in Australia – due to its proximity to the party we were going to, and also its central location. It’s right in the middle of the CBD, just a few hundred metres from the Bourke Street Mall. Knowing that we were staying here meant we didn’t have to worry about public transport or Ubers, as we had so many dining, shopping and entertainment options just a short walk away.
We’d also noticed this Melbourne hotel popping up online with great reviews and ratings of four stars or higher on many sites. It stood out not only due to the location but the promise of an outdoor pool and on-site restaurant. It’s perfectly set up for families who travel to Melbourne.
First impressions of Melbourne’s Voco hotel
The first thing to catch our eye was the hotel’s fantastic attention to detail in the décor and lighting. It also has fun high-tech lifts that assign you to a specific number for your selected level. The Voco staff were very friendly and welcoming, filling us in on the important locations we needed to know within the hotel and nearby. This included the water refill station, a great first look at the many environmentally-friendly practices the hotel follows. The station allows you to fill up a glass bottle of either still or sparkling from a beautifully designed tap to take into your room instead of plastic bottles.
Walking into our 24th-floor Corner Room, we were greeted by 180-degree views of the CBD. It’s rare for a building in this location to have uninterrupted views. We could see out across the Yarra River to the Botanic Gardens, the sports precinct including the Melbourne Cricket Ground and AAMI Park, and also St Patrick’s Cathedral.
Facilities and food
It didn’t take us long after check-in to give in to the attractiveness of the 7th-floor outdoor swimming pool. The pool was fantastic, with more of those great views over the city. It’s also heated, so it’s warm all year round.
The pool joins onto the main restaurant, Blacksmith Bar and Grill. You can enjoy a drink from the bar, or a pizza from the restaurant post-swim. The flow and ease of this Melbourne hotel quickly made us feel very at home, and the breakfast area was also very accessible. In fact, despite all the café options around, we had breakfast both mornings at the hotel. We were absolutely spoilt for choice with the broad range of options – something for everyone to enjoy. The egg-station was a huge hit, and it was made even more pleasant by the huge glass windows in the breakfast room allowing for the morning sun to join us while we started our day.
Final word on this Melbourne hotel
We had a great two nights at the Voco hotel and could not recommend the perfect location more. It’s definitely somewhere we would stay again – most importantly for its sustainable practices. The bedding is made from 100 percent recycled materials, for example, and the lighting system responds to the daily cycle of natural light. Both of us have environmental science backgrounds, so we really appreciate how the hotel is leading the way on this.
If you’re about to travel to Melbourne, find out more information on this hotel here.
Voco Melbourne Central is at 18 Timothy Lane, Melbourne, Victoria
+61 3 9122 5500 | hosts@melbourne.vocohotels.com
This article first appeared in the Summer 2023 issue of Expat Living magazine. Subscribe now so you never miss an issue.
